Having decided that wealth does not give meaning to life the Teacher now turns to wisdom. He values depth rather than superficiality. So a good name is better than perfume. The second half of verse 1 seems rather strange, but the succeeding verses clarify the point, and the point is that suffering and adversity are usually what really teach us things. Laughter is often rather superficial and is almost certainly going to be followed by sadness, whereas death is the destiny of all. So there is truth in death. The modern approach is essentially to pretend that death doesn't happen, or to ignore the problem as long as possible. Any truly wise approach to life must face up to the reality of death. Laughter is so often just transitory.
Misuse of money, whether through bribery or extortion, is utterly destructive, it corrupts the heart.
Patience is better than pride. We can feel we need to give a quick response, so often it is better to wait and think, even if that means that it appears that we don't know what to do. The past always seems better than the present. Why is this? It is because the bad things and the daily frustrations of the past tend to fade in our memories, whereas today's frustrations are staring us in the face.
Wisdom is valuable because it helps preserve life.
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